We are working hard to get ready for our 2017 field season at CBAWO. There is a lot to organize- people, schedules, equipment, flights, and funding. It is a job that seems to start about a month after we return from the field and continues for most of the year- and in reality it is just that. There is a lot of work in the background that makes research at CBAWO and other projects across the Canadian Arctic possible.
 |
| Based in Resolute, Nunavut, PCSP is a logistics support agency that makes Arctic research possible. |
One group that deserves a lot of credit for our research success is the Polar Continental Shelf Project (PCSP). This small program is part of Natural Resources Canada, the national government, and has been operating in the the Arctic since 1958. It is probably not an overstatement to suggest that PCSP has supported almost every major research project in the High Arctic over the years, involving thousands of researchers. Many of the projects are based in Resolute or other communities in the Arctic, but a large number of them are like ours, located in remote field camps scattered over an area the size of western Europe. PCSP has been a bedrock support for all of this research, by providing logistics, aircraft, vehicles, field equipment, and a base of operations in Resolute where they can seemingly help you with any problem. They also have a well-earned reputation for serving great food in their cafeteria and there is nothing like cleaning up with a hot shower and reconnecting with the world after a long field season at the PCSP base.
PCSP facilities have changed quite a bit over the years but the core of the operation is an accommodation building and a warehouse where equipment is stored and maintained. The accommodation building has expanded over the years, most recently in 2011 when a joint effort with the Canadian Military resulted in a significant expansion. This collaboration means that military training operations have a home in the High Arctic, and researchers can use the facilities at other times. They can hold and feed over 200 people, and when the weather is bad and flights are not moving, they can find themselves with a full house!
 |
| The PCSP accommodation and lab buildings in mid-May. Staff have been working since January with researchers and military training exercises. |
The PCSP warehouse is a huge building filled with field equipment. There is seemingly everything there: tents, drills, boats, snow machines, radios, and every kind of camping gear. There is a full mechanics shop for keeping everything thing running smoothly and those "can you help me with this?" moments. They have a supply of fuel for everything, all planned the year before and brought up on the sealift in September. Upstairs there are storage spaces for us to leave equipment over winter, which saves a tremendous amount of freight expense for researchers.
 |
| Putting it together in the warehouse. A load arranged to fly out to the field camp with everything you need to survive and do science. |
Perhaps the most important aspect of PCSP is the access to charter aircraft they facilitate and support. Small planes like the Twin Otter in the picture below are the workhorses of the Arctic, able to land on almost any surface and move equipment and people to the most remote parts of the Arctic. PCSP usually has 1-2 of these aircraft on contract, as well as helicopters and even larger planes when the need arises. Aside from facilitating the use of the aircraft for researchers, PCSP Base Managers work to make the most of these planes. That often means arranging sharing of flights and using unused return flights for other purposes. This is no small task to manage, and when the meter is running at about $2500 each hour, this effort is really critical to stretch research budgets. The process of dispatching flights is complicated and will be the subject of another post, but suffice to say it is something that the research community that PCSP serves is really dependent on!
 |
| Waiting for the next trip- a Twin Otter at the PCSP base in Resolute. |
There are many other partners that make our research possible, but there are few that seem to do as much with so little as PCSP. They are really one of Canada's great successes that more people should know about. When the rest of the world plans to develop their polar research support, they have come to PCSP to learn how to do it.
